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A review by andthenweread
Sorrow and Bliss by Meg Mason
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i don’t know how i feel about this book! for starters, it was definitely an emotional rollercoaster. i felt myself constantly wavering between feeling sorry for martha and being incredibly frustrated with her, and i kept thinking about how patient the people in her life were (especially ingrid and patrick; poor patrick!).
i can’t say i loved this book—the slow pace at the start and back-and-forth timeline threw me off, at times the story’s events felt too outrageous or exaggerated to be realistic, and martha was honestly an infuriating character because i couldn’t really understand her. but, once i got about halfway through reading, i didn’t want to stop until i’d finished, and once i turned the last page i felt like i’d done something large, like running a mile or having a big cry.
sorrow and bliss was an experience for sure (probably rife with topics for a book club discussion, too), and i can say now that i understand what all the online buzz was about.
i can’t say i loved this book—the slow pace at the start and back-and-forth timeline threw me off, at times the story’s events felt too outrageous or exaggerated to be realistic, and martha was honestly an infuriating character because i couldn’t really understand her. but, once i got about halfway through reading, i didn’t want to stop until i’d finished, and once i turned the last page i felt like i’d done something large, like running a mile or having a big cry.
sorrow and bliss was an experience for sure (probably rife with topics for a book club discussion, too), and i can say now that i understand what all the online buzz was about.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Miscarriage